Exposure apparatus, exposure method and device manufacturing method

Abstract

An exposure apparatus restricts reduction in throughput. The exposure apparatus controls movement such that, (1) when a substrate is moving in one direction, a first pattern is moved in a specified direction to expose a first shot region using a first exposure light, then movement of the substrate in the one direction continues while moving the second pattern in the specified direction to expose a second shot region, and (2) then the respective movement directions of the substrate and the second pattern are reversed to expose a third shot region using the second exposure light, then movement of the substrate in the reverse direction continues while moving the first pattern in a direction that is the reverse of the specified direction to expose a fourth shot region using the first exposure light.

1. An exposure apparatus that exposes a substrate, the exposure apparatus comprising:
 a first moving apparatus that moves a first pattern in a prescribed scanning direction; 
 a second moving apparatus that moves a second pattern in the prescribed scanning direction; 
 a substrate moving apparatus that moves a substrate having a plurality of shot regions in the prescribed scanning direction to a first exposure region to which a first exposure light from the first pattern is irradiated and to a second exposure region to which a second exposure light from the second pattern is irradiated; and 
 a controller that controls the first moving apparatus, the second moving apparatus and the substrate moving apparatus using a first exposure mode that: (1) when the substrate is moving in one direction, moves the first pattern in a prescribed direction to expose a first shot region on the substrate using the first exposure light irradiated to the first exposure region, (2) then continues movement of the substrate in the one direction while moving the second pattern in a specified direction to expose a second shot region on the substrate, (3) then reverses the respective movement directions of the substrate and the second pattern so as to be reverse directions to expose a third shot region on the substrate using the second exposure light irradiated to the second exposure region, and (4) then continues movement of the substrate in the reverse direction while moving the first pattern in a direction that is the reverse of the prescribed direction to expose a fourth shot region on the substrate using the first exposure light irradiated to the first exposure region. 
 
     
     
       2. The exposure apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein, in the first exposure mode, during an exposure operation in which one of the first and second patterns is used, a preparatory operation for a next exposure operation is performed for the other of the first and second patterns. 
     
     
       3. The exposure apparatus according to  claim 2 , wherein the preparatory operation includes at least one of an acceleration operation, a deceleration operation and a stopping operation. 
     
     
       4. The exposure apparatus according to  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a first illumination system that illuminates the first pattern using the first exposure light; and 
 a second illumination system that illuminates the second pattern using the second exposure light, 
 wherein the first illumination system illuminates the first pattern during movement of the first pattern, and the second illumination system illuminates the second pattern during movement of the second pattern. 
 
     
     
       5. The exposure apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein:
 the controller controls the first moving apparatus, the second moving apparatus and the substrate moving apparatus using a second exposure mode that: (i) when the substrate is moving in the one direction, moves the first pattern and the second pattern respectively in the prescribed direction to simultaneously expose one of the shot regions on the substrate using the first exposure light irradiated to the first exposure region and the second exposure light irradiated to the second exposure region, and (ii) then reverses the respective movement directions of the substrate, the first pattern and the second pattern so as to be reverse directions to, when the substrate is moving in the reverse direction, simultaneously expose another one of the shot regions on the substrate using the first exposure light irradiated to the first exposure region and the second exposure light irradiated to the second exposure region. 
 
     
     
       6. The exposure apparatus according to  claim 5 , wherein:
 in the first exposure mode, the first pattern and the second pattern are identical patterns; and 
 in the second exposure mode, the first pattern and the second pattern are different patterns. 
 
     
     
       7. The exposure apparatus according to  claim 5 , further comprising:
 a first illumination system that illuminates the first pattern using the first exposure light; and 
 a second illumination system that illuminates the second pattern using the second exposure light, wherein: 
 in the first exposure mode, during illumination with respect to one of the first and second patterns, the other of the first and second patterns is not illuminated, and 
 in the second exposure mode, an illumination operation with respect to the second pattern is executed in parallel with at least a part of the illumination operation with respect to the first pattern. 
 
     
     
       8. The exposure apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein at least a part of the first exposure region and the second exposure region overlap. 
     
     
       9. The exposure apparatus according to  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a first optical system that forms an image of the first pattern in the first exposure region; and 
 a second optical system that forms an image of the second pattern in the second exposure region. 
 
     
     
       10. The exposure apparatus according to  claim 9 , wherein, in the first exposure mode, the image of the first pattern and the image of the second pattern are not superposed. 
     
     
       11. The exposure apparatus according to  claim 9 , wherein the first optical system and the second optical system share at least some optical elements. 
     
     
       12. The exposure apparatus according to  claim 11 , wherein the shared optical elements include a final optical element that emits the first and second exposure lights to the first and second exposure regions. 
     
     
       13. The exposure apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein:
 the first moving apparatus includes a first mask stage that holds a first mask member, on which the first pattern is formed; and 
 the second moving apparatus includes a second mask stage that holds a second mask member, on which the second pattern is formed. 
 
     
     
       14. A device manufacturing method comprising:
 exposing a substrate using an exposure apparatus according to  claim 1 ; and 
 developing the exposed substrate. 
 
     
     
       15. An exposure apparatus that exposes a substrate, the exposure apparatus comprising:
 a first moving apparatus that moves a first pattern in a prescribed scanning direction; 
 a second moving apparatus that moves a second pattern in the prescribed scanning direction; 
 a third moving apparatus that moves a third pattern in the prescribed scanning direction; 
 a substrate moving apparatus that moves a substrate having a plurality of shot regions in the prescribed scanning direction to a first exposure region to which a first exposure light from the first pattern is irradiated, to a second exposure region to which a second exposure light from the second pattern is irradiated, and to a third exposure region to which a third exposure light from the third pattern is irradiated; and 
 a controller that controls the first moving apparatus, the second moving apparatus, the third moving apparatus and the substrate moving apparatus so that when the substrate is moving in one direction: (1) a first preparatory operation is performed for moving the second pattern in a prescribed direction to expose a second shot region on the substrate using the second exposure light irradiated to the second exposure region while moving the first pattern in the prescribed direction to expose a first shot region on the substrate using the first exposure light irradiated to the first exposure region, (2) after completion of an exposure of the first shot region using the first exposure light irradiated to the first exposure region, and while moving the second pattern in the prescribed direction to expose the second shot region on the substrate using the second exposure light irradiated to the second exposure region, a second preparatory operation is performed for moving the third pattern in the prescribed direction to expose a third shot region on the substrate using the third exposure light irradiated to the third exposure region and for moving the first pattern in a direction that is the reverse of the prescribed direction to expose a fourth shot region on the substrate using the first exposure light irradiated to the first exposure region and then (3) after exposing the third shot region by moving the third pattern in the prescribed direction using the third exposure light irradiated to the third exposure region, moving the first pattern in the prescribed direction to expose the fourth shot region on the substrate using the first exposure light irradiated to the first exposure region. 
 
     
     
       16. The exposure apparatus according to  claim 15 , wherein each of the first and second preparatory operations includes at least one of an acceleration operation, a deceleration operation and a stopping operation. 
     
     
       17. A device manufacturing method comprising:
 exposing a substrate using an exposure apparatus according to  claim 15 ; and 
 developing the exposed substrate. 
 
     
     
       18. An exposure method that exposes a substrate, the method comprising:
 synchronously with movement of the substrate in one direction, moving a first pattern in a prescribed direction with respect to a first exposure light to expose a first shot region on the substrate using the first exposure light from the first pattern, and then while continuing movement of the substrate in the one direction, moving a second pattern in a specified direction to expose a second shot region on the substrate, which is adjacent to the first shot region, using a second exposure light from the second pattern; 
 then reversing the respective movement directions of the substrate and the second pattern so as to move in reverse directions, and synchronously moving the substrate in the reverse direction while moving the second pattern in the reverse direction to expose a third shot region on the substrate using the second exposure light from the second pattern; and 
 continuing movement of the substrate in the reverse direction consecutively with exposure of the third shot region while moving the first pattern in the same direction as the movement direction of the second pattern during exposure of the third shot region to expose a fourth shot region on the substrate, which is adjacent to the third shot region, using the first exposure light from the first pattern. 
 
     
     
       19. The exposure method according to  claim 18 , further comprising:
 when the substrate is moving in the one direction, moving the first pattern and the second pattern to simultaneously expose one shot region on the substrate using the first exposure light irradiated to the first exposure region and the second exposure light irradiated to the second exposure region; 
 reversing the respective movement directions of the substrate, the first pattern and the second pattern so as to be reverse directions; and 
 when the substrate is moving in the reverse direction, moving the first pattern and the second pattern to simultaneously expose another one of the shot regions on the substrate using the first exposure light irradiated to the first exposure region and the second exposure light irradiated to the second exposure region. 
 
     
     
       20. A device manufacturing method comprising:
 exposing a substrate using the exposure method according to  claim 18 ; and 
 developing the exposed substrate.